The holidays are upon us. To some, it may seem as if COVID-19 has covered our lives with a wet blanket and dampened our spirits at a time of year we all look forward to.
Many of the annual traditions that we love and appreciate were postponed or cancelled, including Fort Lauderdale’s Winterfest Boat Parade and the festive tree-lighting events. The New Year’s Eve anchor-drop will occur along with an evening of entertainment, but it will happen virtually.
The good news for 2021 is that vaccines are already being administered. Hopefully, by summer, we will have a return to normalcy. But please keep the health of yourself and others in mind as you celebrate the holidays. The virus remains very much with us. Infection rates locally are still high, so practicing social distancing and using face masks are critical.
When the City Commission returns to business in the new year, one of the issues that will take particular significance is the re-envisioning of our downtown.
Recent private development has created an urban core that most could not have imagined a decade ago. Now, our job is to ensure this becomes truly an urban village and that we craft an exciting public realm for the area.
It’s a rare opportunity that many communities wish they could have. Many new and exciting eateries and places to explore are making Fort Lauderdale that much more exciting. We should all look boldly to the future and fashion a vibrant downtown that speaks strongly as to who we are as a community.
With more people coming into the area, that means more traffic. As we examine new ways to get around, one such approach will be commuter rail service along the Florida East Coast railroad, expanding upon the Brightline network that temporarily halted at the height of the COVID pandemic.
That pause has allowed us to discuss more in-depth what the future looks like for public transportation. Given the traffic congestion in South Florida, we need to move ahead with a more localized commuter rail than Brightline offered.
Miami-Dade County has led the way with a recent agreement that would create multiple local stops along the tracks in its jurisdiction. We need to follow suit.
The Brightline station downtown should be a hub of a service within Broward of stops at the international airport and communities to our north and south and then beyond to Palm Beach and Miami.
While commuter rail is important for our long-term future, the city of Fort Lauderdale must ensure it fits as well as possible within the vision of downtown.
We face a difficult decision on how the service crosses the New River.The old train bridge simply cannot handle increased rail traffic without having a major impact on our economically vital marine industry. We must also realize that the increased number of trains will be another headache for vehicular traffic at each train crossing.
So, we have a choice of building a new, higher bridge or exploring the possibility of a tunnel.
The designs for a new bridge that I’ve seen are horrendous. On top of that, at 55 feet high, it would need approaches beginning at almost at Sunrise Boulevard to the north and Davie Boulevard to the south.
I fear the effect would be to physically divide the city and defeat the Renaissance occurring downtown. It could cut off the historic district the and Himmarshee area from the rest of the city. And, it could cement the great divide between “this side of the tracks” and “the other side of the tracks.”
That’s why I’ve favored a tunnel. We need a better examination of the feasibility and cost of such an undertaking than the back-of-a-napkin thoughts we are working from today.
And, if it is truly proven that a tunnel is impractical or too costly, we at least need to make sure the bridge design is truly extraordinary in nature and befits its surroundings better than almost any other bridge does.
We passed a 1-cent sales tax for transportation in Broward, so we should spend it where it will have the most impact. In addition, another source of financing may exist at the federal level. The incoming Biden administration is talking about a major undertaking to improve local infrastructure.
I’ve been heartened by recent discussions with my counterparts at Broward County that they understand these issues and are willing to work with us on forging the best solution.
But there are other opportunities where the city can really shape the public realm of downtown.
There is the future of the old One Stop Shop site.
We all agree that more park space is needed downtown, and there is no more ideal place than there. The question is what form that park space takes and how best to activate the entire site. We have received a lot of community input regarding what to do, and the City Commission will be making a decision on this early in the new year.
Then, there is the fate of the county’s Governmental Center and our City Hall.
Both have outlived their lifespan and face serious and costly structural issues. We have been working for a couple years on the concept of a joint government campus. This could be a real jewel, an anchor to the urban core that signifies the area’s transformation.
Earlier this month, the city and county commissions met together and agreed to solicit a public-private partnership for a joint campus. We expect to attract major national and international architectural and construction teams as we want to build something that is iconic.
A private partner could take charge of the design and construction and perhaps finance and maintain the new building, which would be located where the current county bus terminal is. We would tie the county-city building in with a new bus terminal and the Brightline station situated just across the tracks.
Private industry can be much more efficient, so the building could be built a lot faster than if done solely by government.
I’m glad that all the county and city commissioners agree on the importance of not just building a replacement for our current operations but that they are looking at the project with a long-term vision. It speaks well for the cooperation that could exist through the co-location of the two governments.
A new government campus then allows us to reimagine the existing properties with such possibilities as a vertical shopping center or affordable housing.
So much has already occurred to boost downtown.
The renovation of the historic Parker Playhouse will be completed soon, and, thanks to the overwhelming approval by the voters of the parks bond, we can continue to enhance the downtown and neighborhood experience, such as the planned Tunnel Top Park on Las Olas Boulevard.
Moreover, the city’s arrangement with the Florida Panthers hockey team is moving forward to renovate War Memorial Auditorium. The Panthers are making a multimillion-dollar investment to add rinks for ice skating and hockey and to restore the existing interior for concerts and family-friendly programming. Work should start this spring.
I’m also extremely pleased that the federal courthouse will remain downtown.
This has been a dicey subject for more than a decade. There was a point at which the court could have closed with local cases assigned to judges in West Palm and Miami. But I can say that I am very confident that the federal government is close to securing a site downtown for a new courthouse. Congress has already earmarked money for construction, so this could get underway very soon.
We have a lot to look forward to in 2021. Let me wish everyone the best this holiday season and that you have a prosperous and healthy new year. Please be safe as you join friends and family in celebrations and gatherings in the coming weeks.
Yours,
Dean
